The first was via Sonia who advised me that the letter and enclosures had been sent to Margaret Beckett. I advised Margaret Beckett personally by letter that HM's Command was on its way. I never did get a reply.

The second letter, unsigned, was from the Defence Services Secretary who passed it on RTC, Honours 1, from whom I received the usual bafflegab. The question is, did the DSS know that he had sent it since he didn't sign?

I also have copies of the attachments should you need them.

Mon Mar 09, 2009 7:55 pm

BarryF

Joined: 11 Feb 2006
Posts: 2721
Location: Berkshire, United Kingdom

Re: Shanghied Mail?

GLOman wrote:

I received 2 acknowledgements from the Palace.

Thanks for those copies, David.

It is astonishing, is it not, that the office in Buck House has absolutely no idea as to which Government Department to forward letters in connection with a medal the services for which it was conferred were services of the Queen. And men died in that service.

It beggars belief that I now have copies of letters forwarded to:

1. The Foriegn Office

2. The Foreign Secretary

3. The MoD (not Veterans)

4. The Veterans Dept

5. The Cabinet Office

I think that just about covers 90% of all relevant suits!

As I say - we were Crown Servants at the time. But it seems that that has been totally forotten.

Or is that service, where men died, of so little consequence?

How sad is that?

Barry

_________________BarryF, who fought for the Right to Wear the Pingat Jasa Malaysia

Mon Mar 09, 2009 8:10 pm

John Cooper

Joined: 11 Feb 2006
Posts: 2158
Location: Suffolk

Re: Shanghied Mail?

BarryF wrote:

.

.............../Or is that service, where men died, of so little consequence?

How sad is that?

Barry

Yes Barry 519 times...................

_________________--------------------------------------------------------------
HD Committee: Amateurs in a Professional World
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Mon Mar 09, 2009 8:31 pm

MB

Joined: 09 Oct 2006
Posts: 807

GAWD, Barry! That's a poser of a question for an auld soldier who's had a few scoops of claret. However, since we are talking about the missing link between our Queen and the suits and us I can only point my finger at the present Prime Minister. He is the only bloke who has the 'ear' of HMQ on a weekly basis.... and he did promise to,"Look into," our situation. He sits twixt HMQ and the suits and could bring the pen I mentioned earlier to paper if he chose to.....and if he could be swerved away from his present course of self-preservation to deal with other issues.

Done me best to answer your question, Barry, and leave it to others to post their answers. After all that is why we are on this wonderful site.

_________________Mike Barton

Mon Mar 09, 2009 8:36 pm

GLOman

Joined: 06 Dec 2006
Posts: 668
Location: Northamptonshire

Mike

I have suggested elsewhere that I believe our unelected, Prime Minister by default (almost a OBE, CBE "buggins turn"), is concerned about his future when he is no longer PM. His wanderings have largely been given to educating the Germans, French, Italians and other EU countries, and the Americans,in how to manage their economies in this down turn based presumably on his handling of the British economy over circa 12 years which is not without its critics.

Perhaps with an eye on becoming the UN's Economic Troubleshooter similar to Blairs UN Roving Peacemaker job,for which, of course, I felt he was totally unsuitable, with a similar remuneration. It is political only in the sense of this present Government; many of his protesters in the Party, are treated in the same cavalier manner as we veterans are treated. Strong Government does not require bullying, coercion or gerrymandering; it requires consensus.

Our next Prime Minister, whatever Party, needs to be a good leader for this Country, before trying to put the World straight;
a task which is impossible, taking into consideration cultures and attitudes; that some countries in fact are not nations, but tribal conglomerates, have got by in their own way for centuries, without democracy, which is after all a western notion based on a capitalist system on what has to be of necessity, an ordered system.

No, I'm not a communist or socialist; my view is based purely on my reading of history. Lawrence, writing in the Seven Pillars of Wisdom believed that it was better for "the Arabs to carry out things in a tolerable way" "rather than 'you' do it perfectly".

In my view Ministsers, briefed by your Civil Servants, should not let "the mothers know best attititude" and the arrogance of these civil servants, lead you to assume that you can do it "perfectly" when interferring in a nations affairs of which you have little knowledge, or that that knowledge is based civil service "received wisdom"!

Lawrence obviously understood more about the Middle East than the arrogant George W Bush and Blair and their colonial minded advisers, notwithstanding the mysteriously missing missiles.

Incidentally, one previous Prime Minster full of self importance and over confidence returned from Germany in 1938 waving a piece of paper - Peace in Our Time - with a smug expression on his face; we all know what happened in 1939!

Barry,

If this post is considered to be "out of order"I am happy for it to be removed.

Regards to you both,

David

Last edited by GLOman on Sat Mar 14, 2009 11:30 am; edited 2 times in total

Mon Mar 09, 2009 10:14 pm

MB

Joined: 09 Oct 2006
Posts: 807

David.

I see no reason for the removal of your above post. An understanding of historical facts is the only way to an understanding of the future. We PJMers are an inextricable part of history now, and the fact that we are still fighting shows that we have not forgotten our part in a long forgotten but amazingly successful war (or police action) to preserve a fragment of "Empire" in its own success as an emergent nation to become what Malaysia is today.

_________________Mike Barton

Tue Mar 10, 2009 6:24 pm

mcdangle

Joined: 12 Feb 2006
Posts: 1027
Location: Scotland

MOD

They are at it again!
See the following letter received from the MOD who say the rules on Crown servants 'are not intended to apply to foreign nationals'.
Also, don't bother me anymore wih your questions, contac the FCO?? The FCO told me to contact the MOD as the FCO could not answer my questions on Crown servants.